These are the five Titan gravel bikes
Robust and durable, yet light and comfortable: these are probably the most important characteristics expected of a good gravel bike; at least for the first two, titanium could be the ideal frame material. No other material used for bicycle frames is considered more durable than the shiny, silvery metal. It is not so much the material itself, but rather the lack of paint that makes a titanium frame so resistant to the traces of a bicycle's life. Because titanium does not corrode or age, the bikes usually do without a protective but scratch-sensitive finish.
Especially on gravel bikes, which are often loaded with panniers, exposed to dust, mud and stone chips and where the risk of falling is greater than on road bikes, the first "battle scars" on painted steel, aluminium or carbon frames often become visible after just a few rides. The unpainted, shiny surface of a titanium frame, on the other hand, is largely immune to scuff marks and passing branches. However, if it does suffer a scratch, it can usually be polished out with little effort.
In the second part of our test of titanium bikes, we present five suppliers that have been recognised in our Comparison of road racers were not included in the previous issue and show their interpretation of the ideal off-road racer. Using these examples, we took a look in the lab to see whether the bikes offer any other advantages over those made of other materials and for whom it is worth reaching for the precious metal.
Short and sweet
Titanium is predestined for a robust gravel bike, as the material can withstand rough handling almost without a trace. However, you should not expect particularly light or comfortable bikes. The refreshing concepts of small, experimental suppliers and increasingly favourable entry-level prices are encouraging. Compared to aluminium and carbon, however, the material remains comparatively expensive.
Titanium gravel bikes: lots of weight, little comfort
We were able to sound out the technical level of current titanium frames for the 3/24 issue of TOUR. The fact that titanium produces particularly light frames turned out to be a fallacy. This is all the more true for the more robust gravel bikes. Most of our test frames weigh around 1800 grams naked. This makes them 10 to 20 per cent lighter than comparable steel frames. However, even inexpensive aluminium frames can easily reach this level; high-quality, well-made aluminium models can significantly undercut it and are still cheaper.
Only the US manufacturer Moots was able to win with his (very expensive) road racer in this discipline in the March issue: With a frame weight of 1580 grams, only expensive aluminium frames can keep up. However, the low weight can be at the expense of stiffness, as the lab test of the Moot showed. Our gravel bikes are all reassuringly stiff, but also correspondingly heavy - the heaviest frames come from Chirp Chirp and Triban and weigh around two kilograms.
Competitively priced?
It is interesting to note that although there are more cheaper models manufactured in the Far East among the current bikes compared to previous tests, the majority of these are also heavier. In the TOUR history, there are significantly lighter frames weighing less than 1400 grams, even in the age of disc brakes. The heavy frames mean that the bikes are not exactly light, even with expensive (i.e. light) components. Titanium gravel bikes can hardly be built lighter than nine kilos, even with a lot of effort. By way of comparison, this is the weight of mass-produced carbon gravel bikes in the €3000 price range. For road bikes, titanium frames weigh no more than eight kilograms.
The first disillusionment on the scales is immediately followed by the next: it is also a myth that the frame material is particularly comfortable. All road bikes and gravel bikes in our comparison are at an average level at best; many even ride extremely harshly compared to modern carbon bikes, especially endurance models with carbon frames almost always get top marks, at least for comfort at the rear. This is less dramatic for gravel bikes because the wide tyres provide a lot of comfort. On narrower road tyres, however, a carbon frame is the better choice, especially for long distances.
How easy is it with titanium?
An overview of the individual weights of the current gravel bikes and the Titanium road wheelssorted by pure frame weight. Manufactured in the USA Moots is the only model that stands out clearly, but the frame alone costs 6500 euros. Behind it, the differences between the gravel bike and road frames are only noticeable in the tendency. The forks from Falkenjagd and Chirp Chirp are also made of titanium and add another 200 to 300 grams. For comparison: Current carbon frames (without forks) weigh approx. 800 to 1400 grams, depending on quality, and steel frames 1800 to 2400 grams. Titanium bikes are therefore on a par with aluminium bikes, although they are significantly cheaper.
A question of perspective
In view of the sober facts, the price-performance ratio of titanium bikes is not particularly good, even if entry into the world of the precious metal is cheaper than it was a few years ago thanks to favourable frames from the Far East. However, the fascination of titanium goes beyond the numbers. Anyone who enjoys a bike for a long time because it still looks like new even after years will be able to overlook the higher price or slightly higher weight.
The results of the Titan gravel bikes at a glance
The sub-scores from 4.0 are in red, so you can see which bikes are out of the question for you due to weaker individual scores.
*LL = for life, CR = crash replacement, RA = racing exclusion
Jens Klötzer
Editor
